Houston Rockets: Team still has not addressed its biggest need
The Houston Rockets were the first ones to make a big off-season move with the surprising trade for all-star point guard Chris Paul. It seemed like they were getting a head start on the competition in off-season acquisitions to be the first to assemble a super team. Instead, the rest of the NBA responded in a big way by trading for and signing away some of the players that must have been in Daryl Morey’s plans.
The Houston Rockets may have the best 1-2 combo in the backcourt in the NBA right now with James Harden and Chris Paul at the helm, but they have not addressed their biggest need, which is a stretch four that can defend the rim. Ryan Anderson is great offensively, but he is not a bruiser or shot blocker down low.
Now obviously those stretch power forwards who are also great defensively are in short demand as Paul Millsap and Blake Griffin are the only two big free agents that overall fit that mold. But it seems like the Rockets are going to suffer from the same issues they had last year that were heavily exposed in the Western Conference semi-finals of 2017.
And if the team does not re-sign Nene Hilario, I could see the Rockets taking a step BACK in the standings as their lack of down low presence will be even further depleted. They could see help in the form of Zhou Qi who they just signed to a multi-year deal, but his 218 pound body frame is questionable to play up as well in the NBA as it did against lower competition in the CBA.
The Houston Rockets may have jumped the gun on the Chris Paul trade with the thought that they would certainly land another superstar following their acquisition of Paul. So far, that has not happened.
More from House of Houston
- Are you the 2021 FanSided Sports Fan of the Year?
- Houston Texans: 4 reasons Romeo Crennel is right coach right now
- Astros-Twins Wild Card Series: 5 things to know as MLB postseason begins
- Houston Texans: The Most Underrated Sports Drought Ever
- Houston Texans: J.J. Watt’s early case for NFL Hall of Fame
The team should have been focusing on what their main need is which is a big man who can run the fast break and be a presence down low on defense but still have decent enough range to stretch the floor and hit a three every now and again. I would certainly sacrifice Ryan Anderson‘s shooting prowess of 40 percent from behind the arc for a low 30 percent three point shooter like the aforementioned Blake Griffin and Paul Millsap with their more versatile and complete game.
The Western conference is only getting tougher now that the Oklahoma City Thunder added Paul George alongside Russell Westbrook and the big suitors for Paul Millsap have all been Western Conference teams (Phoenix Suns, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Denver Nuggets.) The latest news per Shams Charania is that Blake Griffin is going to re-sign with the Los Angeles Clippers:
Blake Griffin plans to reach agreement on a five-year, $173 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2017
This shows that everyone in the Western Conference is doing their damnedest to over throw their Golden State Warrior overlords.
Qi will have to play at the highest level he can if the Rockets don’t want to fall lower than their three seed of last year. Because right now our bench is thin and our front court has not improved. And that’s the one area that needs the most help on this team.
You have to wonder that if the Rockets could do it all over again, they would try and trade away enough contracts to create cap space to pursue Blake Griffin. Chris Paul is not a bad player by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s about addressing your needs. And the Rockets certainly didn’t NEED Chris Paul. They needed down low defense and rebounding with exceptional offensive capabilities.
Unless they somehow want to trade with one of their chief rivals (The San Antonio Spurs) for Lamarcus Aldridge, who will be left available on the market to address the team’s biggest hole? Daryl Morey can’t be happy that he couldn’t land Paul George and it doesn’t seem like the Rockets were ever really in the running for Millsap or Griffin anyhow. So what is the next move? We will have to wait and see and hope it’s something that will address the glaring flaw this team has, or we’ll be looking at another early post-season exit.